BNL, Upton, Long Island, New York, USA
The BNL Energy Recovery LINAC (ERL) is a high beam current, superconducting RF electron accelerator that is being commissioned to serve as a research and development prototype for a RHIC facility upgrade for electron-ion collision (eRHIC). Key components of the machine include a laser, photocathode, and 5-cell superconducting RF cavity operating at a frequency of 703 MHz. Starting with a foundation based on existing ADO software running on Linux servers and on the VME/VxWorks platforms developed for RHIC, we are developing a controls system that incorporates a wide range of hardware I/O interfaces that are needed for machine R&D. Details of the system layout, specifications, and user interfaces are provided.
BNL, Upton, Long Island, New York, USA
The Machine Protection System (MPS) is a device-safety system that is designed to prevent damage to hardware by generating interlocks, based upon the state of input signals generated by selected sub-systems. It protects all the key machinery in the R&D Project called the Energy Recovery LINAC (ERL) against the high beam current. The MPS is capable of responding to a fault with an interlock signal within several microseconds. The ERL MPS is based on a National Instruments CompactRIO platform, and is programmed by utilizing National Instruments' development environment for a visual programming language. The system also transfers data (interlock status, time of fault, etc.) to the main server. Transferred data is integrated into the pre-existing software architecture which is accessible by the operators. This paper will provide an overview of the hardware used, its configuration and operation, as well as the software written both on the device and the server side.